I understand the "inspiration behind the game mechanic."
The United States is more likely to build a "new" subway than one using older technology, even if the older technology is cheaper. People are more likely to buy new calculators than using an abacus.
I understand because I live in a big city, where we have lots of money for public works and buying a calculator for five bucks is about as expensive as getting an abacus elsewheres for 2 bucks.
The problem is not "the idea." The problem is THE MATHEMATICS.
Say you just got a Grade 10 planet. That's 9 tiles to work with, because 1 goes to the initial colony.
Alright, say you just started and researched "Xeno Factories;" You have the option of building 10pt production at 540. You can have 9 of these for... let me pull out my graphing calculator....4860 bcs? So we have 9 factories fkr 90 production points for 4860. You use factories to produce more factories, so the build time gets shorter and shorter.
Now, say you're a newbie. You think that "Industrial Sector," more advanced production technology, is going to be superior than "Xeno Factories." So you research it. Now, you've got the option of 24 pts for over 10,000 bcs. And now, that's your only, only option if you want to build a production building. So the choices are 90pts/4800bcs and 24pts/10,000. You spend all the time and resources, and get a horrible pts/bcs tradeoff. Newbies don't know that with the current game mechanic, you actually get screwed for researching what's supposed to be an "Uber" technology. For them, the game is essentially over in terms of building factories "the natural way," once they research that technology, and unless they're producing over 10,000 bcs (possible, but by that time the game should be over anyways, unless you insist on having a 4yr old click the "end turn" button for better scores), they will never build another factory in under 400yrs without having to spend 10,000 per 24pt package.
So, the mathematics is what's wrong. In the United States, cities like Podunk, Kansas, don't need a New York sized subway. For a population of only 5 billion, the residents of Podunk Kansa might not need a Galactic Stock Exchange, either. But they have no other choice, because for some reason, the knowledge and option of building "practical" pts/bcs exchange has disappeared.
So basically, the present game mechanic is that new technology obsoletes the old technology, and erases knowledge of how to build small or medium scale, cheap and cost effective building. Since better technology is out there, you must use the better technology. This is like forcing people to buy a new computer every time a newer processor or graphics card comes out. The technology is out there... and it has "better" productivity value (unless you only touch cpu's for the games)... and can run load up WinXP or MS Office 20% faster. So you spend $5,000 every time a new cpu comes out, rather than stick with the budget $1,000.
At present, I find the game mechanic somewhat elitist, hurts both the newcomer, as well as veterans trying to make sense of a sci-fi setting. Better technology... which must be paid for in research costs.... will result in a poorer, and extremely prohibitive new pts/bcs exchange rate. It might take up less space, but the newer exchange rate is so poor that it's impractical to plop in another 10,000 bcs or another 5,000 bcs for a 4pt upgrade. Once you get to Manufacturing Centers, it's iffy.. .Industrial Sectors... just....no. Veterans know that Starbases are better; only research Industrial Sector to get Oribital Replicators for the Economy Starbases, actually building or upgrading to Industrial Sectors has hideously poor cost-effectiveness. Newbies are the only ones who would be foolish enough to research Industrial Sector for the purpose of actually building industrial Sectors. For Veterans, the game is over by the time your main planets are able to "naturally" upgrade its existing factories, because by that time, they're the only ones you can count on; any planets you turn or conquer will not be able to "naturally" build it, or can only do so after 40-400turns. Who should have to wait 40-400 turns to put 24pts on their planet? The only other option is to pay 10,000 bcs, which is the equivalent of 2 Huge-hulled, fully armed, defended, thruster-enhanced capital ships.
Upgrading planet tiles is a central game concept and a determinant in the player’s overall enjoyment of the game, and the existing logic for why a broader array of building options- including previous pts/bcs exchange mediums- vanish, once new tecnology is researched, apparantly makes sense to some people, including the developers, so it's unlikely to change. To be honest, it makes sense to me, too; in the 1970’s, the slide-rule industry vanished overnight with the advent of a new gizmo called the “electronic calculator.” In six years, it fell out of production and became a museum exhibit. The problem is that we’re talking about pts/bcs exchange rates, relative to marginal profits and costs. It’s why most of us don’t buy certain $500 graphing calculators; even if we could have only one calculator, the most any of use would spend would probably be $100, because the difference for the general user is marginal. The $500 dollor calculator might even be harder to use. It’s why people aren’t rushing out to but the latest $20,000 laptop to be able to run Galactic Civilizations II.
In short, I’d affirm the original grievance and request that it’d be addressed; having more building options can be exciting, and enhance the stimulation- and they’re already in the game.
